Stolen Cadi plus gun, 3 lbs. of weed seized: Orange police blotter

ORANGE, Ohio -- Obstructing official business, receiving stolen vehicle, having weapons under disability, improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle, marijuana possession; Orange Place: A patrol officer pulled over a Cadillac Escalade on the night of Jan. 24 and informed the driver that it was listed as stolen out of Parma Heights. The Cleveland man, either 51 or 57, depending on different forms of official I.D., initially drove off, saying he was going to call his lawyer.

The officer followed him into the Super 8 motel lot, where he parked next to an Infiniti driven by a woman who said she knew him. Police soon arrested him at gunpoint. Inside the Escalade, they found several large plastic bags of suspected marijuana, weighing a total of at least 3 pounds, along $997 in cash.

Also found inside wrapped in clothing was a loaded .38 special Interarms Rossi revolver, with police noting that the driver had prior felony convictions -- including drug trafficking -- that prevented him from owning a firearm.

He claimed he had recently paid $3,000 for the Escalade, although the owner indicated otherwise.

Harassing communications, Lander Road: A girl, 16, arrived at the police station with her grandmother on Jan. 25 to report receiving harassing Instagram messages from an account labeled as a stalker of the girl and her sister -- whose fifth-grade teacher was also mentioned -- by someone who claimed to be a man over 40 and carrying a gun.

The older sister took screenshots for prosecutors and blocked the suspect, and police got in touch with the Orange High School Resource Officer with plans to investigate further to determine if the suspect was in fact a juvenile.

Theft (credit cards), Orange Place: A Vermont man, 29, reported on Jan. 28 that he had checked into the Extended Stay hotel about 2 a.m. and when he woke up later that morning, had received emails from his credit card bank informing him of possible fraudulent activity.

He realized he must have lost his wallet somewhere between check-in and getting to his room. Missing were assorted credit cards, his Texas driver's license and about $40 in cash. He promptly cancelled the credit cards.

Suspicion, Orange Place: When the license plate on a damaged Cadillac STS parked at the Hampton Inn came back as registered to a Ford, a patrol officer spoke with the four people sitting in the car next to it on the afternoon of Jan. 25.

A woman claimed the car belonged to her sister, and her boyfriend said the plates were his, after which it was towed from the scene.